Ice Blessed
by Miki Mechetta
Summary: What if Elsa ran away as a child? What if events transpired in a different way? And where did Elsa's powers come from anyway?
1. Prologue

Once upon a time, the land was full of magic. Trolls ruled the forests, nymphs ruled the seas, and fairies ruled the frozen reaches of the icy mountains.

Amidst all these wonders lived humans, creatures devoid of magic, but brimming with a different kind-of potential: imagination. From the minds of these magic-less beings came inventions and crafts like the others had never seen and so it was that the humans traded their creations with the magical creatures in return for the goods of their respective lands.

Ages passed this way with the different creatures living in their own towns and cities until an accident changed things. A young trader, a human man from a tiny village by the sea, was hurt on a trading expedition to the mountains. The rulers of the fairy court allowed the man to stay within their icy halls while he healed and, during this time, he fell in love with the youngest daughter of the fairy king. Favor smiled upon the boy and his love was returned whole heartedly.

As most stories of this kind go, love conquered even the most skeptical of hearts and the union was smiled upon by human and fairy alike. Thus the couple was married and the people of the village declared them their leaders for who better to rule them than those who had bridged the gap between humans and magic?

The village soon became favored above all others due to the kind and wise guidance of its rulers and other humans flocked to the village, which grew to a town, and then a city. A city known as Arendelle.

In time, the fairy queen and her human king had a child. A son with the wintery powers of his mother and the wisdom of both his parents. He too ruled the city as did his daughter, another human born with the powers of frost.

Nothing lasts forever, though, and the power dwindled as the ages past until it faded away, as did many of the magical creatures in the land. Soon, trolls, nymphs, fairies, and frost powers were nothing more than legends and the age of humans dawned as the age of magic faded away.

Over time, even the rulers of Arendelle forgot their magical heritage. Forgot the frost powers that they'd once held, though the magic never _truly_ died. It laid in wait for one worthy of the power to be born. And so it was that, generations later, a king and queen gave birth to their first born, a daughter, with the power of frost. No one knew where her magic came from. No one remembered the old stories. Thus it was that the gift, for a gift it was, was viewed as a _curse_ by the princess' parents and it's existence was kept hidden away from the eyes of their subjects.

Not everyone feared the gift, though. The king and queen's younger daughter adored her sister's magic almost as much as she adored its wielder. So it was that, while the rulers searched for a way to hide the gift, the two princesses joyed in its wonders.

All wonders must come to an end.


	2. The Accident

The glimmering lights of the aurora shimmered through the glass panes of the window, drawing restless sea-green eyes from the ceiling to the world beyond and a restless mind from its random wondering to thoughts of magic, thoughts of snow. With an excited giggle, the child climbed out of her bed and dropped to the floor before racing across the room to her sister's bed. Was Elsa awake too?

A quick peak showed that her sister was fast asleep.

Well, Anna knew just how to change that!

A few whispered words about snow and ice later, the two sisters were giggling and rushing downstairs to the ballroom.

As soon as they'd closed the door behind them, Anna cried, "Do the magic!"

Elsa smiled at her sister's request and summoned up a glowing ball of white energy before shooting it into the air, creating a mini snowstorm. As flurries reigned from on high, Anna let out shouts of delight and the two sisters began to play in the snow, building a snowman and skating around on magic ice, Elsa's latest trick.

The skating ended with the sisters falling into a snow bank which gave Anna the brilliant idea for a snow slide! Never able to deny her sister anything, Elsa summoned up the idea and the sisters played on it until Anna had another idea: snow jumping! She jumped from pile to pile as Elsa summoned them, each one a little higher than the last, but then Anna started to go too fast. Elsa could barely keep up! She cried out for her sister to slow down, but the child didn't listen. Desperate to keep her from falling, Elsa did her best to keep pace, but then her foot hit a patch of ice and her blast of winter magic went flying through the air. Instead of hitting the ground, it hit Anna.

The little girl tumbled from the sky and crashed to the floor. As Elsa watched in fascinated horror, streaks of her sister's auburn hair faded to snow white.

For a long moment, Elsa stared at her sister's body. No. No, this couldn't be! She couldn't have… She rushed to her sister's side and, with trembling fingers, Elsa brushed a hand across Anna's face. Ice cold. Her sister was ice cold. That could only mean one thing, her sister was dead.

Tears began to cloud her blue eyes as truth sank in. She had killed her baby sister. What kind-of monster did that? How could she have been so careless? She'd disobeyed her parents command and used her powers, now Anna was paying the price. A sob escaped her pale lips, echoing around the silent room and she realized that she couldn't stay here. What would her parents say? What if she hurt someone else? No, she had to go.

As tears streamed down pale cheeks, Elsa rushed from the room and through the twisting hallways of the castle. She had to go. She had to get out. She couldn't stay here. Not after she… Anna… What kind of monster did that?

* * *

"Your majesties! Your majesties!"

The terrified cries broke the king and queen from their slumber and brought them rushing to their bedroom door. Outside the room stood the captain of the guards, looking just as terrified as his voice had sounded.

"What is it?" asked the king as his heart began to race.

With a trembling voice, the solider spoke. "Sire, it's Anna. One of my guards heard something in the ballroom and we found her inside surrounded by, well, snow, sire. I don't know where it came from, but she's freezing and barely breathing. The palace healer is with her now, but she's not responding to him."

The rulers gasped and traded worried gazes. Snow? Elsa.

Doing the best to keep the fear from his voice, the king asked, "And what of Elsa? Was she with Anna?"

"No, my liege. Shall I have one of my men check on her?"

"Yes, please do so and report back to me. We will be in the infirmary."

The man nodded and rushed off down the hallway as the king closed the door and the royal rushed to ready themselves. Neither spoke, both too lost in worried thoughts of their young daughters.

* * *

Elsa trudged through the forest, carefully wiping her eyes on the back of her now grubby pajamas as the ground below her coated in frost. She'd been trying to stop it for hours, but she was too upset, too busy crying to control herself and so the frost spread out beneath her in a blanket of white that coated the green grass.

Given the fact that she wore no shoes, maybe the frost was a good thing. After all, it wasn't like it could hurt her. No, it could only hurt the people around her.

Fresh tears tracked down her face at the thought. Where could she possibly go? She couldn't go back to the castle. Even if her parents forgave her, there was no way Elsa could live with humans ever again. Her very existence was a danger.

She stopped walking and stared down at her hands. Why her? What had she ever done to bring this curse upon herself?

She stared up at the sky where the shimmering aurora still glowed and silently wished that the iridescent lights had never shone in the sky. If they hadn't, then Anna would still be… Would still be…

A sob escaped as her vision burred and she began to lower her gaze back to the ground, but then something caught her eye. The mountain, its snowy surface glowing faintly green in the aurora's light. A land of ice and snow where her powers could act up unnoticed. A kingdom of isolation where it wouldn't matter if they did. Yes. If there was anywhere that she could go to keep people away, it would be the mountain.

With a shuddering breath, Elsa blinked away her tears and set off towards the distance, snowy peak.

* * *

The king and queen rushed into the infirmary where the palace healer was doing his best to warm their little Anna, but when he saw them he frowned and shook his head. Nothing was working and the child was growing colder.

When the royal duo came closer to look at their daughter, they let out twin gasps of horror. Anna's once monotone hair was now swirling with white highlights. The sight confirmed their unspoken fears, there was no way their daughters chill was natural.

As the couple crowded close to their freezing daughter, the captain of the guard entered the room.

"Your majesties, I'm sorry, but there's no sign of Elsa. Given the ice and snow, I'm afraid that it is my belief that some sorcerer broke into the palace and…"

"No," the king said, cutting off the man's words mid-sentence. "This is not the work of some random mage and I know what we must do. Wrap the child in blankets to allay the chill and prepare our horses, the queen and I must seek help if we are to save our daughter."

"Sire, shall I summon an escort for you?"

"No. We must do this alone and we won't be going far."

* * *

Elsa walked for what felt like hours and the sun was rising in the sky by the time she reached the bottom of the mountain. She was exhausted, but she couldn't stop. She had to see snow before she could rest. That was the goal. She had to be where no one else could get hurt.

* * *

The king and queen raced through the forest, guided by an old map from the royal library. They knew that this was a long shot, that trolls where likely nothing more than a myth, but they had to try. No human could save their child.

When they arrived at clearing the map lead them too, the king dismounted and cried, "Help, please! Please, it's my daughter!"

From her horse where she waited, her child clutched close to her heart, the queen watched in trepidation. Would this prove a fool's errand? Eleven years ago, before Elsa's birth, she would have scoffed at the very idea of troll, but now… Now she knew that magic was no myth. If her daughter could summon ice and snow, surely trolls could be alive in the forest.

The king called out one final time and then they waited, silently begging for the legends to be true. Then the rocks began to move.

At first, they thought an earthquake was upon them, but no, the ground wasn't shaking, the rocks were moving of their own accord!

As the royals watched in fascination, the rocks tumbled down the mountain and surrounded them, staring at them with wide eyes.

These were no rocks. Trolls did exist!

After the king desperately explained what had happened, the oldest of the trolls came forward and motioned for them to bring the child to him.

With trembling hands, the queen gave her husband their daughter and he lowered her to the ground.

The elder troll ran his hand along her brow and breathed a sigh of relief. "There is magic within her, but it did not reach her heart yet. She can still be saved."

He did something with his hands and the queen almost wept with joy when she saw that her baby was breathing normally once more and that the color was returning to her cheeks. She opened her mouth to thank the troll, but the creature spoke again before either of the royals could offer their thanks.

"Where did the frost magic come from?"

The couple exchanged worried looks. They had kept the secret for so long that telling it to anyone, even this creature, seemed wrong. After a moment, though, the king answered the question. "Her sister, my eldest, Elsa. We don't know where she's gone, though."

The troll nodded, remembering the days of yore when all the rulers of Arendelle summoned ice and snow, but he did not speak of these things. The past was the past and trolls did not put much stock in yesteryear. They were a forward thinking species.

"I see. There is no way to hide what happened here, your majesties. Anna will forever bear the mark of magic in her hair and all will question how it came to be. But while Elsa's gift contains fear, there is also beauty and wonder in it. She can learn to control the gift."

Neither royal acknowledged the elder's words. Instead, they thanked him for saving their daughter and took Anna home, knowing that the old troll was right. After tonight, all of Arendelle would know of Elsa's powers for how else could they explain the markings on their princess, the disappearance of their heir, and the snow in the ballroom?

* * *

Elsa fell into the snow with a sigh of relief. She'd made it. After hours of walking she'd made it. She'd reached the edge of the snow. Her belly rumbled and the princess curled into a little ball. Food. She'd forgotten about that and she'd have to figure something out, but right now all she wanted was to sleep. She was so tired. So very, very tired.

Within minutes, the little princess was fast asleep.

If she'd stayed awake, she would've heard the soft crunch of feet walking across the snow and the gasp of surprise when the creature saw her. She would've felt the slim, but strong arms pick her up and carry her into the mountains. She would've seen kind, but worried faces looking down at her.

But she was asleep, so she heard, felt, and saw none of this until she woke up with a scream.

* * *

Little Anna slowly opened her eyes to see her mother watching over her and smiled. She'd had the most wonderful dream about Elsa playing with her and a troll kissing her. It had been so funny! She couldn't wait to tell Elsa all about it!

With a smile, the child sat up in her bed and looked around her room. The smile faded when she realized that her sister wasn't there and so she asked, "Mama, where's Elsa?"

Tears welled in the queen's eyes and she gathered her daughter into her arms. As she held the little one close she whispered, "I don't know, sweetie. No one knows."


	3. The Return

Elsa stared down at the city below her as a shiver ran down her spine. Arendelle… Ten years had come and gone since last she set foot in the city of her birth, a self-imposed exile.

What she little knew of the kingdom was limited to secondhand stories gathered from her rare trips into the secluded villages at the edge of her mountain home, but it had been enough. Enough to hear that her sister was alive! That she had somehow survived her encounter with Elsa's magic and was now a full grown woman. Enough to learn of her parent's death and to weep for their loss. Enough to know that, to the people of her home, she was a witch, a sorceress of winter who was feared and hated for trying to kill her sister in a ritual to improve her magic. (How that rumor had begun Elsa would never know, but it was enough to ensure that she always hid her face when interacting with humans.) Enough to know that today was her sister's coronation and, though it was not wise, Elsa would take the risk to be there. It was worth it to see Anna in all of her glory as queen.

She closed her eyes at the thought. Oh, how she had missed her sister these past ten years! She wondered how much Anna had changed, knowing full well that the image in her head, the child with shinning eyes, was nothing more than a memory by now. She wondered idly if Anna hated her too. It wouldn't surprise her if she did, nor would she blame her sister for that.

Not that it mattered either way. Anna wouldn't even know Elsa was there and, after today, Elsa would return to her mountain home and never come back.

With a determined nod, the once princess pulled the hood of her cloak up and began to walk towards the city. It was time to put an end to her exile, if only for today.

* * *

A knocking on the door roused Anna from her slumber and the young queen-to-be sleepily opened her eyes as she called out, "Who is it?"

"It's Brigitte and the other girls, your grace, here to help you prepare for the ceremony?"

Anna blearily blinked her blue eyes and yawned before asking, "Ceremony?"

"Your coronation, your grace?" The voice replied, sounding worried.

"Right, my coronation." Anna agreed, not really registering the words until her heavy-eyed gaze fell upon the dress waiting at the foot of her bed, banishing the last remnants of sleep from her mind as she gasped and whispered, "It's coronation day."

Tears welled in her eyes at the thought, but she blinked them back. It would not do for anyone to even think that she'd been crying. She was to be queen; she couldn't be seen as weak.

After she took a steadying breath, Anna forced her lips into a smile and called out, "Come in!"

The door opened and a trio of her maidservants entered. They quickly banished Anna's sadness, for who had time to think when caught up in the whirl of preparation for the most important day of her life?

When the women finally declared Anna ready, the queen-to-be thanked them for their hard work and exited her room, ready to run off to meet with her advisors before the ceremony, only to run smack into someone's chest. A very male someone who grabbed her hand before she could fall to the floor.

"Your Grace! I'm so sorry!" The man began to shower apologies on her and Anna wasn't sure if she should be biting back a laugh or a groan as she realized who it was. Of course it would be Hans.

She settled for a demure smile and a light curtsy as she removed her hand from his and said, "Prince Hans, please, the fault was all mine. I should have been watching where I was going."

The prince grinned broadly at her words and Anna immediately knew what was coming. She bet he'd planned the whole thing, too. "No, your majesty, the fault was all mine and may I say that you look divine this morning? A true symbol of wisdom and beauty ready to take her place as ruler of this land."

Anna just smiled at the visiting royal and wondered for the thousandth time when he'd give it a rest. Hans was nice, probably one of the nicest suitors she'd met, but in the two months that the prince had been at the castle he'd done nothing but praise her every move. Maybe if Anna had been a little younger or a little more sheltered she would have found him charming. She was a well-trained lady, though, and his advances just came across as overbearing. At least he'd had the good sense to not ask for her hand in marriage yet, though she was certain the offered would soon be made.

And now really was not the time to be worrying about visiting royalty from the southern isles! Coronation Anna, get it together!

"Yes, well, thank you. I'm afraid I must be off, though. My advisors have asked for my presence and I must see them soon if I wish to keep to the day's schedule. I trust I'll see you at the coronation?"

Hans smiled brightly and nodded, clearly pleased that she'd accepted his praise. "I wouldn't miss it for the world, your highness."

After another quick curtsey, Anna was off, hurrying towards the council chamber where her advisors would undoubtedly be waiting for her.

* * *

Arendelle hadn't changed, it even smelled the same!

As Elsa walked along the streets, making sure to keep to the shadows, she listened to her former subjects excitedly discussing the coronation. It was clear from their eager chatter that Anna was well loved, a worthy queen for her land.

The thought made Elsa smile. How odd to think of her little sister as anything but the bright-eyed child who used to beg for snowmen and ice rinks? Would she even recognize Anna? How much had ten years changed her sister?

Well, she'd just have to wait a little longer to see for the coronation wouldn't begin until noon. That meant that she had time to go and see the one other thing she'd missed while in the mountains: the sea.

A quick series of back alleyways later, Elsa found herself standing on the edge of the city, gazing out across the Fjord. She could even see the pier from here! A hoard of visiting Nobles were making their way along the dock, here to give credence to her sister's position as queen, though Elsa was certain many more had already arrived in the preceding weeks. What an exciting day this was!

Anna had always loved days like these. As she gazed out across the clear, blue water and felt the cool sea breeze for the first time in ten years, Elsa wondered what her baby sister was up to.

* * *

"…and then you must take the sacred objects in hand and wait for the priest to speak his blessing, at which point you will officially be queen of Arendelle, your grace." The portly herald finished his reading of the itinerary and looked to Anna for her approval.

The young queen-to-be nodded in approval, showing that she understood the plan, and then looked to Erik, her head advisor and co-regent during the five years since her parent's deaths.

The elderly man gave his own nod and carefully signaled Anna that she should dismiss her advisors to prepare for the coronation using one of the countless hand gestures the duo had come to rely on over the years.

She followed his suggestion and, as soon as the others had left, her demure smile turned to an amused grin. "Do I smell _chocolate_?"

Erik laughed and nodded as Anna rushed over to the far door and pulled it open, revealing the ballroom. Though it was empty of people, rows of tables lined the walls and piles of food, palates, and cutlery were waiting to be set upon the tables for dinner. When she saw all the plates, Anna giggled and turned back to look at Erik.

"I didn't even know we owned this many salad plates! Just how many do we need?"

"One for every guest, your grace."

Anna's smile turned to a pout. "And that's another thing. Since when do you call me 'your grace?'"

Erik sighed and glanced around to make sure no one was there before replying, "Anna, I may be your elder, your friend, and your advisor, but I am also your subject. As of this afternoon, you will be my queen and it's time I began to acknowledge that. I have been far too casual in my address for far too long, a fault which I mean to rectify post haste."

Anna rolled her eyes and walked into the ballroom to search out the source of the delicious smell. "Fine, it can be 'your grace' when we're in public, but I promise that I shan't listen to a word you say in private if you call me anything but Anna."

Erik couldn't help but smile. No amount of tutoring or etiquette lessons had been able to get rid of the princess' distaste for formalities, but at least she followed them when need be. "As you wish, Anna."

"That's more like it!" Anna declared with a nod and then she returned to searching through the desert table, but stopped when she got halfway along it, her gaze transfixed on the wall.

Curious what had distracted the young ruler's attention, Erik entered the room to get a better look. When he saw what it was, he couldn't help but sigh. He'd have to have a word with the butler about unauthorized changes to the ballroom décor.

"Shall I have them remove it before the party?"

Anna shook her head, still staring up at the newly hung picture of her parents.

"Are you sure, Anna?"

"Yes. Yes, I think it's a good idea to have them here. To remind people that, though I am young, I come from a line of strong and proud rulers. At least, that's what Margareta would say," Anna finished with a cut nod that left no room for argument and Erik couldn't help but agree. Margareta, Anna's etiquette teacher for the past four years, had certain imparted the importance of ceremony on her young pupil.

"Do you think we could put up a picture of Elsa, too?"

The queen-to-be's words banished the proud smile from Erik's face and he frowned deeply as he said, "Anna, you know what people think of your sister. I don't think it would be wise..."

The princess cut him off mid-sentence with a harsh look. "Those silly rumors? Erik, you know as well as I that they are nothing but falsehoods. What happened was an accident and nothing more. Elsa would never hurt me."

This was yet another thing the tutors had never destroyed: Anna's unwavering faith in and love for her sister. No matter what rumors sprung up, that Elsa was hiding in the wilds waiting to come back and seize the throne or that the worst of the winter storms were Elsa's rage, Anna never stopped believing that her sister was alive, well, and just as good-hearted as she'd always believed her.

Erik sighed, a near constant habit that he'd picked up over years of dealing with a stubborn princess. He knew there was nothing he could say to dissuade Anna once her mind was set, so he merely nodded and said, "I'll see what I can do, Anna."

The young woman smiled brightly and curtseyed as she murmured her thanks before glancing at the clock on the wall and crying, "Oh, I need to go! It's almost time for the procession!"

As Anna rushed from the room, Erik sighed again and looked up at the picture of the king and queen. Anna could be a great ruler, of that he was sure, but she was so young and so headstrong. He only wished he could shelter her from the full burden of her birthright a little longer, but that time was gone. The reign of Queen Anna the First was about to begin.

* * *

The trumpets sounded and the crowd let out a cheer for their queen-to-be.

Towards the center of the crowd stood Elsa, watching with a smile on her face as Anna began the procession from the palace to the cathedral where the ceremony would take place. She truly had grown into a beautiful young lady. Their parents would have been proud.

Another trumpet blast rang out as Anna stepped from the confines of the palace onto the city street and the crowd surged. Elsa, too caught up in her silent musings, barely registered the motion and so it was that she failed to notice the child trying to push his way past her to get a better view. By the time she registered the pressure at her side it was far too late and she was toppling over.

She tried to catch her balance, but she couldn't and so she fell down, the hood of her cloak falling back as she did so.

All around her the excitement turned to fear as hushed whispers began to surge through the crowd.

"It's the ice queen!"

"I thought she was dead!"

"It can't be!"

"Don't let her touch you!"

Elsa tried to hide her face, but the damage was done and the people were all falling away from her, leaving her lying on the cobble stones in the center of a sea of fearful stares.

* * *

Anna sensed that something was wrong before she even saw the way that her subjects were reacting or heard the whispers, but it wasn't until she found herself staring across the square into the familiar and frightened blue eyes of her sister that she realized the gravity of the situation.

While her people reacted with fear, Anna's reaction was one of joy and she rushed towards her sister with a cry of "Elsa!"

Before the former princess could reply, cries of "She's bewitched her!" and "We must protect the queen!" rang out through the air as guards rushed towards the fallen ice bearer.

Elsa immediately jumped to her feet and cried out, "Stay back!" but they would not head her call. Realizing that she had no other choice, she sent a blast of winter magic at the guards, knowing that their armor would protect them from any real harm, and ran.

She was too busy running away to see Anna push out in front of the guards or hear her sister's gasp of pain as the magic struck her. She was too busy running to see Anna fall to her knees, clutching her heart as the blue light of winter magic took root inside of her.

All she knew was that from every side cries of "Ice Devil" and "Don't touch her!" and "Sorcerous!" were ringing out as she fled the town. This had been a mistake. She never should have come back.


End file.
